The King has revealed in a televised message his cancer treatment will be reduced in the new year.
The King has revealed his cancer treatment will be reduced in the new year.
In a televised message to the nation, the monarch said he had reached a “milestone” in his treatment, calling it a “personal blessing” and giving thanks for early diagnosis and medical advances.
He said: “Today I am able to share with you the good news that thanks to early diagnosis, effective intervention and adherence to doctors’ orders, my own schedule of cancer treatment can be reduced in the new year.”
Saying that the initial diagnosis could feel “overwhelming”, the King urged the public to be screened for their own peace of mind and said that early diagnosis “quite simply saves lives”.
The process was not as “frightening, embarrassing or uncomfortable” as some imagined, he added, calling it a “few moments of minor inconvenience”.
The pre-recorded television message, filmed in the Morning Room of Clarence House at the end of November, was broadcast on Channel 4 on Friday (Saturday NZT) as part of its Stand Up to Cancer night.
It is intended in part to publicise a new national screening tool, screeningchecker.co.uk, that allows the British public to search for cancer detection programmes available to them.
The King has been having weekly treatment since his diagnosis in February 2024, although Buckingham Palace has specified neither the type of cancer nor the treatment.
It is understood that the frequency of the treatment will now be significantly reduced.
The King has not said he is in remission.
The adjusted programme of treatment is described as precautionary and will continue for as long as the King’s doctors advise.
A spokesman for the King said: “His Majesty has responded exceptionally well to treatment and his doctors advise that ongoing measures will now move into a precautionary phase.
“This position will be continuously monitored and reviewed to protect and prioritise his continued recovery.”
Delivering news of his reduced treatment schedule to the nation, the King said: “This milestone is both a personal blessing and a testimony to the remarkable advances that have been made in cancer care in recent years; testimony that I hope may give encouragement to the 50% of us who will be diagnosed with the illness at some point in our lives.”
He added: “I know from my own experience that a cancer diagnosis can feel overwhelming.
“Yet I also know that early detection is the key that can transform treatment journeys, giving invaluable time to medical teams – and, to their patients, the precious gift of hope.”
Saying he had been profoundly moved by the “community of care” for cancer patients, the King disclosed he had also “learned something that troubles me deeply”; that “at least nine million people in our country are not up to date with the cancer screenings available to them”.
“The statistics speak with stark clarity,” he said. “To take just one example: when bowel cancer is caught at the earliest stage, around nine in 10 people survive for at least five years. When diagnosed late, that falls to just one in 10.
“Early diagnosis quite simply saves lives.”
The King was diagnosed with cancer following an investigation into symptoms initially diagnosed as an enlarged prostate. At the time of announcing the news, Buckingham Palace let it be known that his cancer was not of the prostate.
Soon afterwards, in March 2024, the Princess of Wales said in a personal video message that she was in the early stages of treatment after a cancer diagnosis.
A form of the disease was identified during tests after her major abdominal surgery in January that year.
Neither the King nor the Princess has disclosed the type of cancer they have been diagnosed with. The King hopes that, by speaking about his illness in general terms, he is better able to support the “whole cancer community”.
Of the importance of early diagnosis, the King said on Friday night: “I have heard this message repeatedly during my visits to cancer centres across the country.
“I know, too, what a difference it has made in my own case, enabling me to continue leading a full and active life, even while undergoing treatment.”
Too often, he said, “people avoid screening because they imagine it may be frightening, embarrassing or uncomfortable.
“If and when they do finally take up their invitation, they are glad they took part.
“A few moments of minor inconvenience are a small price to pay for the reassurance that comes for most people when they are either told they don’t need further tests, or, for some, are given the chance to enable early detection, with the life-saving intervention that can follow.”
The new national screening checker, he said, “demystifies the process, answers your questions, and guides you towards taking that crucial step”.
“As I have observed before, the darkest moments of illness can be illuminated by the greatest compassion. But compassion must be paired with action.
“This December, as we gather to reflect on the year past, I pray that we can each pledge, as part of our resolutions for the year ahead, to play our part in helping to catch cancer early.
“Your life – or the life of someone you love – may depend upon it.”
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